


Oranges on Apple Trees

by ullman



Category: Backstreet Boys, NSYNC
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-02-24
Updated: 2010-02-24
Packaged: 2017-10-07 12:49:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/65307
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ullman/pseuds/ullman
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Written for Raynedanser (for make the yuletide gay 2009).</p><p>With a huge thank you to Caroline Crane for the beta!</p>
    </blockquote>





	Oranges on Apple Trees

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Raynedanser (for make the yuletide gay 2009).
> 
> With a huge thank you to Caroline Crane for the beta!

Chris didn't know if JC had caught onto the fact that he always arrived beyond fashionably late when picking him up at the studio but it didn't surprise him at all when he found JC on a stool, playing with dials on the sound board, his eyes on AJ in the sound booth. It did surprise him to find Kevin there, engrossed in a book, and he hesitated a moment before sitting down beside him on the couch.

 

"Hey," he greeted both men, waving at AJ before pulling out his phone. He wondered how long it would take JC to notice his arrival this time.

 

"Kirkpatrick," Kevin murmured without looking up from a novel that looked suspiciously like Stephenie Meyer's latest.

 

Chris spent the next five minutes silently mocking Kevin via text messages, with Justin as his audience of one. He then leaned back in his seat, crossing his legs then uncrossing them immediately as he watched JC fiddle with the dials on the sound board.

 

Chris sighed, glancing at his watch. He gave Kevin a sideways glance, asking himself if maybe he should take his chances with a new audience. His mouth, however, seemed to be ahead of his brain. "So. I was wondering - strictly hypothetically speaking of course – say you have this very talented partner..."

 

Kevin tilted his head, glancing up. "Strictly hypothetically speaking?" he repeated in his slow drawl.

 

"Of course," Chris immediately assured him.

 

Kevin raised one eyebrow.

 

The silence that followed lasted longer than Chris would have liked, but he had a feeling he'd better make absolutely sure his brain had indeed caught up. "Your wife, though. She's very talented, of course."

 

"_Of course_," Kevin repeated, every syllable laced with sarcasm.

 

They spent the rest of their time together in silence.

 

***

 

JC had ended up needing close to half an hour and a couple of none too subtle hand gestures from inside the sound booth, but once he'd noticed Chris it hadn't taken more than ten minutes for him to wrap things up.

 

Later, in the car on the way to the restaurant, JC needed almost as long to stop laughing after Chris had told him about his somewhat unfortunate conversation with Kevin.

 

"You know, I could do a whole album like that. Just say the most outrageous stuff and then go – hypothetically speaking of course," JC mused, still wiping at his eyes.

 

"I don't know, C. I think it's been done before," Chris deadpanned. "Schizophrenic I think it was called," he added without taking his eyes off the road.

 

JC grinned and leaned in to press a kiss to Chris's cheek. "Hater," he told him.

 

Chris nodded, smiling, silently thanking JC for not asking him what exactly he'd been trying to ask Kevin. He wasn't sure he'd even know the answer to that question. "You know it. But hey, doesn't it make it better knowing it all comes from a place of love?"

 

***

 

"Do you think my first album was me, speaking hypothetically?" JC asked out of the blue when they finally took a break to replenish fluids, or as AJ preferred to call it, got a soda.

 

"God, I hope so," AJ said without hesitation.

 

JC frowned. "Really?" he asked, failing to mask his surprise.

 

"What? You didn't get the memo that underneath this rugged exterior is a very, very vanilla guy? Compared to _some_ anyway."

 

"Schizophrenic was pretty tame," JC offered after a long moment of silence in which he studied AJ, as if to find those hidden bits of vanilla.

 

AJ's eyes widened. "Really?" he asked, sounding as surprised as JC had. He wolf-whistled. "_Damn_, I gotta tell you man, I seriously don't know whether to congratulate Chris or, you know, commiserate."

 

***

 

"Kirkpatrick," Kevin drawled, sounding surprisingly happy to run into Chris at a fundraiser for Camp Good Days.

 

Chris frowned in suspicion, but then his gaze followed Kevin's, leading him to the retreating figure of none other than Kevin's wife, Kristin.

 

"My wife," Kevin prompted, smirking.

 

"Right, yeah," Chris mumbled as he did his best to ignore Kevin's all too obvious smugness. "She's very talented," he offered lamely, still staring.

 

"Thanks. Of course that means a whole lot coming from someone staring at her ass," Kevin said dryly, grinning when Chris immediately looked away from the almost hypnotizing sway of Kristin's body.

 

"Probably more of a gift than an actual talent anyway," Chris dared with a tentative smile.

 

Kevin nodded. "And I thank the Lord every single day," he drawled, lifting his glass in a silent toast. His gaze wandered again, first to his wife, across the room, then to the two men beside her, Brian and what appeared to be Nick Carter's scarcely fed cousin, attached at the hip.

 

Chris recognized the look in Kevin's eyes, and the familiarity of it made him feel brave enough to ask, "You ever miss it?"

 

Kevin didn't even pretend not to understand his question, and just shook his head, slowly. "I miss _them_," he said thoughtfully. "My brothers. Musically, though – I think we're on different paths."

 

"Guess they're more on JC's path now," Chris said, smiling proudly, despite the fact that the second he heard the words leave his mouth he knew he'd all but made JC a sitting duck. He waited.

 

Kevin merely nodded. "He _is_ very talented," he drawled, straight-faced.

 

***

 

"You know, the other day," AJ said with a hint of hesitation in his voice. "You mentioned your first album. So, I couldn't help but think – does that mean there's going to be another one?"

 

"From your lips to God's ears," JC sighed as he sat down beside AJ.

 

"Okay," AJ nodded, leaning in. "Are you saying you want to actually release some of your work again? Because I was beginning to think you were on some kind of indefinite sabbatical here."

 

"Hey. I do stuff," JC said, gesturing towards the sound board. "See, _stuff_."

 

"Yeah, you do stuff. You do stuff to keep busy. Come on, Jayce, for you? Stuff like this – isn't this what gardening is for other people?"

 

***

 

The following day Chris picked up his phone, because sometimes he liked his snark coming from a place of love, and while Kevin seemed to be warming up to him, he wasn't quite there just yet. And so he called Lance instead.

 

"Chris," Lance murmured. "Where's the boy toy?"

 

"Out playing," Chris replied automatically. "With the boys. Or, well, just the one, actually," he continued absently. "Let me ask you something. Say you're dating this – " He paused and only when he remembered Lance wasn't currently dating anyone, he felt it safe to continue.

 

"Say you're dating this really, really talented guy. And you love him, and he loves you, and it's all great. Except that he's not actually, you know, doing anything, career wise, anyway."

 

"Wait. This really, really, talented guy, whose career's not going anywhere– are we talking about you, or JC here?" Lance interrupted.

 

"JC. _Of course_. And hey – I am doing plenty of things. I got a band."

 

"Hey. I did imply you were sort of talented just now," Lance pointed out.

 

"Thanks. Because even though it has been implied before, I never get tired of hearing it," Chris grinned, shaking his head. "Lance, tell me something, honestly, have you ever considered hooking up with Kevin Richardson?"

 

"Sure I have," Lance said easily.

 

Chris's eyes widened. "You have?"

 

"_Of course_. Too bad he has this really, really talented wife."

 

***

 

On his way home from the studio, JC decided to call Joey. The decision not actually a conscious one, but definitely the right one as he found himself greeted with a warm, "Hey there, C. What's happening?"

 

"People are questioning my career path," he said with a sigh.

 

"You have a career path?" Joey asked immediately.

 

"_Wow_." JC blinked. "Et tu, Brute?"

 

Joey grinned unapologetically. "Sorry, C, but I don't think I'm alone in thinking you were just kinda along for the ride with Chris, you know?" It seemed like Joey didn't want JC to give that particular piece of insight too much thought because he immediately continued, "So, these people who are questioning that path of yours, who are they?"

 

"Well, AJ sort of asked me about – " JC cut himself off mid-sentence, shaking his head because that wasn't quite it. "And Chris, I think he sort of implied – " He paused again, knowing that whatever Chris had been trying to ask Kevin probably wasn't it either. He blinked, suddenly feeling more than a little confused.

 

Joey hummed encouragingly.

 

"You know what? I think there's a chance I actually have some questions of my own," he admitted after a long moment of silence on his end, listening to Joey's soothing voice.

 

"Attaboy," Joey said, a smile audible in his voice.

 

***

 

"So I've been thinking – "

 

Chris uttered the obligatory gasp of surprise, and didn't even duck when JC's hand found its way to his head for the equally obligatory thwapping. "Hmm?" he prompted innocently.

 

"I think I'm done gardening."

 

Knowing from experience that asking for clarification early on only tended to cause more confusion, Chris tried his best to hide his already considerable confusion and just said, "_Okay_."

 

"And, I was thinking – Schizophrenic, it really was kind of tame, wasn't it?"

 

Chris nodded, smiling knowingly.

 

Nodding too, JC continued, "_So_, I guess I just want to do it right this time. Get it all out."

 

"Oh my God," Chris grinned, feeling about as close to giddy as he'd ever get at the idea of JC doing another album. Especially since his inner cynic had convinced him a long time ago that the mere idea only existed in the hypothetical realm. "Schizophrenic part deux: the gloves come off. I think I'm a little scared."

 

JC smiled enigmatically. "Don't be. Rumor has it I'm really, really talented."

 

 

**end**


End file.
